Carole Knits

october zinnia
october zinnia
martinis with a view
martinis with a view
gettysburg fence for
gettysburg fence for
germinate shawl on rocks
germinate shawl on rocks
field of flags 2
field of flags 2
color affection with edge
color affection with edge
cedar leaf shawlette 2
cedar leaf shawlette 2
3_27_2014
3_27_2014
3_18_13
3_18_13
2_24_2014
2_24_2014
1_11_13
1_11_13
peony-bouquet-for-carole-knits
peony-bouquet-for-carole-knits
dale-and-jackie-for-carole-knits
dale-and-jackie-for-carole-knits
nightshift-progress-for-carole-knits
nightshift-progress-for-carole-knits

ABC Along Adventures of Dale and Carole Arthritis Ask Me Anything Birthdays Bloggers Books Buy More Yarn Charity Knitting Circular Sock Machine Contests Crochet Dyeing Epic Sock Blanket Eye Candy Friday Feeling Crafty Fiber Festivals Food Good, Bad, Ugly Hmmm Joyful Wednesday Knitting Knitting Olympics Macro Monday March Money Madness Memes Mittens Monday On My Mind Movies Museum of Me Mutterings My Backyard NaBloPoMo One Little Word Patterns Photography Project Spectrum Quilting Random Ravelry Read With Us Reenacting Run For Your Life Saturday Posts Selfies Sewing Show & Tell Sock Knitting Spinning Sunday Funnies Swaps Ten on the Tenth Ten on Tuesday Thankfulness That's Life Think Write Thursday Three Things Throwback Thursday Thursday Things Uncategorized Vacations Wordless Words in the Wild

  • Home
  • Carole Julius Photography
You are here: Home / That's Life / Adventures with Randy and Mary

Adventures with Randy and Mary

February 3, 2014 By Carole

Last Thursday night was a late night for me. After Kiwanis we had friends back to our house, as we do most weeks, and we got to chatting and, ummmm, drinking, and I didn’t get to bed until well after midnight. I tell you this not to brag about my ability to party despite my advancing age but to set the scene for Friday morning.

Normally, I am up early even on my days off. Truly, I have always been a morning person. I like to get up early and get started on my day. On work days it’s shower first then coffee and computer and I (try) to leave the house by 6:30am. On non work days I’m still up early (usually by 6:30) but it’s coffee and computer and then exercise before my shower. 

Friday morning, though, I was understandably tired and I didn’t get up until after 8am. I didn’t have anything special planned for the day, just some errands, so I was relaxing and enjoying a leisurely cup of coffee when the phone rang. It was my sister-in-law, Mary, and she was calling to invite me to go look for snowy owls. She thought we’d have a good chance of seeing them and said that she and Randy could pick me up at 9am.

Ummmm.

Of course I jumped at the chance and I hurriedly washed my face and got dressed, gulping my coffee as I did so. I had to search a bit for warm clothes and discovered that my new cold weather running pants were perfect for wearing under my jeans. And then I had to prep my camera bag and find a thermos for my second cup of coffee and have something to eat, too. I managed to be ready before they pulled into my driveway, though, and off we went to Duxbury Beach.

It’s a pleasant ride and we chatted on the way. Randy regaled me with stories of the owls and their various adventures when they had gone to look for them. It occurred to me as he was talking that I had never actually hung out with them without Dale around and I realized that doing this with them – without Dale – really made me feel a part of this family. It was a great feeling and the time in  the car passed quickly.

When we got to the beach Mary pulled out her binoculars and Randy drove slowly down the beach road. Mary kept searching across the ice and I, well, I just sat there and waited for an owl to fly in front of the windshield or something because I think that’s about the only way I would have found one on my own. As we were driving along, an Audubon van passed us and Randy stopped them and asked if the birds were visible. Sure enough, the driver told us there were 2 and he told us exactly where to look for them.

And we found them! The first one was out on the ice and was camouflaged really well. I’m confident Mary would have seen him but I don’t think I would have. We got out of the car and walked across the ice as far as we could (which was not far, frankly) and I took a few photos but he was really too far away for anything worthwhile.

Back into the car we went and Randy drove down the beach road a little further. We could see some cars pulled over and photographers by the dunes and that was a big clue as to where the bird was. Even I could have found him on my own!

The setting was absolutely perfect – the dunes, the fence, the beach grass and the grey clouds couldn’t have made a more picturesque spot to see my first snowy owl.

snowy owl on fence for carole knits

How cool is that? I’m no wildlife photographer but I think I was able to capture him well. And he just sat and looked at us for the longest time. His head was swiveling a lot and at one point a flock of Canada geese flew over head and he looked right up at them.

snowy owl on post for carole knits

I cropped this photo in pretty tight so you can see him better. I just love all those feathers. And, in case you don’t know your snowy owl facts, this is a young owl and that’s why his feathers have so much brown. As they get older they get whiter and then look more like, well, Hedwig.

I didn’t want to crowd the other photographers but they were pretty friendly and we were chatting away while we snapped photos. I could have stayed there for a long time, just watching and marveling at the beauty of this bird. After a bit, though, he started getting . . . antsy.  Do owls get antsy? I don’t know but we could tell he wasn’t going to hang around much longer. And sure enough, he crouched down  . . .

snowy owl ready for flight for carole knits

And then he flew away.

snowy owl flying for carole knits

Before he took off, though, I took 110 photos. Wanna see my favorite?

snowy owl wide shot for carole knits

I’m thinking it would make a great canvas print for our living room.

I had so much fun on this spur of the moment trip. I didn’t get to the gym and I didn’t get to Town Hall or to the travel agency but I had an adventure and that’s way better than running errands. As Randy said – “10 years from now, what will you remember? Going to the grocery store or seeing your first snowy owl?”

I’m glad I picked the owl.

Related posts:

Default ThumbnailSometimes Last Minute Works Default ThumbnailWednesdays Are For Knitting: Mary’s Birthday Socks Default ThumbnailRandy’s Story Default ThumbnailMy Weekend Adventures
« Eye Candy Friday
Ten On Tuesday »

Filed Under: That's Life

Comments

  1. gale (she shoots sheep shots) says

    February 2, 2014 at 4:18 pm

    Great story! And gorgeous owl.

  2. Kathode Ray Tube says

    February 2, 2014 at 5:12 pm

    That is so cool! I’ve heard that there are snowy owls around the airport too but I’ve never seen one. Your pictures are great.

  3. Judy says

    February 2, 2014 at 5:23 pm

    I love snowy owls. I saw one on Friday on Plum island and saw three today at Salisbury beach. They are beautiful.

  4. Jo says

    February 2, 2014 at 5:49 pm

    Surprised to see you on Sunday. What a marvelous adventure and what a spectacular bird. I have seen features about them on TV a couple of times–they’re early this year? Have a great time watching the Super
    Bowl and try to avoid any more boozing it up 🙂

  5. Dee says

    February 2, 2014 at 6:17 pm

    Beautiful photos! So right, it is the unexpected opportunities that often make the best memories.

  6. Jo-Ann says

    February 3, 2014 at 7:16 am

    Those spur of the moment adventures are usually the ones that leave us with the best memories 🙂 Gorgeous photos, but then I’d expect nothing less from your camera lens!

  7. margene says

    February 3, 2014 at 8:12 am

    We need to be open to new possibilities, as a chance like that comes along infrequently. We need to be open to new joys and new roads. Thank you for sharing your adventure!

  8. Manise says

    February 3, 2014 at 8:33 am

    Beautiful juvie owl! I saw my one and only adult snowy owl in Dryden, NY when I was in Nursing School, perched on a light pole. They are magnificent creatures.

  9. Marcy says

    February 3, 2014 at 8:38 am

    What beautiful photos! I’ve never seen a snowy owl. Thanks so much for these. Spontaneous outings have always turned out to be the most special for me. Sounds like this was for you too.

  10. Kym says

    February 3, 2014 at 8:55 am

    I’m glad you picked OWL, too! What a grand adventure — and the photos are fabulous. Just fabulous! Serendipity, for sure!

  11. Donna says

    February 3, 2014 at 8:59 am

    I love how your adventure worked out. You got some beautiful shots!

  12. Jeanne E says

    February 3, 2014 at 9:00 am

    These pictures are fabulous, Carole, and that snowy owl is just beautiful!

  13. Robby says

    February 3, 2014 at 9:03 am

    Cool! I’m not a huge bird fan, but what great photos. I think Mr. Owl would have been pleased with his portraits.

  14. bloglesssharon says

    February 3, 2014 at 9:22 am

    what a treat

  15. Ann says

    February 3, 2014 at 9:31 am

    I loved the one where the owl is flying off. Amazing photos.

  16. Patti says

    February 3, 2014 at 10:30 am

    I absolutely love this post, the photos — everything! Thank you!!

  17. Debbie says

    February 3, 2014 at 12:05 pm

    Beautiful photos! Aren’t days like that wonderful? Thanks for sharing!

  18. Geri says

    February 3, 2014 at 4:21 pm

    Wow! How spectacular . One of my fav children’s book is Owl Moon which talks about a nighttime search for owls. Would love to see one in its habitat instead of through a bird of prey facility.

  19. Hillary says

    February 3, 2014 at 5:37 pm

    That is really cool. I love how fluffy the owl looks in one shot. I think you made the right choice.

  20. Nicole says

    February 3, 2014 at 9:21 pm

    Stunning photos! Owls are truly beautiful creatures. <3

  21. Mary says

    February 3, 2014 at 10:01 pm

    whoa. seriously. you did a great job with the photos and you’re right. who cares about the gym and errands.

  22. Trista says

    February 4, 2014 at 1:57 am

    That is a dream~ I can hardly believe a Snowy Owl on the beach in the daytime, and you had your camera. Thank you for posting those!

  23. Mary K. in Rockport says

    February 4, 2014 at 7:45 am

    This post is JUST GREAT!!!! Thank you!!!!! I’m so glad I’m getting to see this wonderful creature even second hand. We’ve had some snowy owls on Cape Ann, but they’ve been out on the ice expanses and very hard to spot from a distance.

  24. Sue says

    February 4, 2014 at 8:20 am

    Carole, I greatly admire your photography skills. The owl photos are gorgeous. Love the dunes, the raggedy fence, the sky and the owl. Just spectacular.

    An owl-fancier once told me that if you see an owl during daylight hours it means hunting hasn’t been very good — since they usually hunt at night. Did your owl-experts tell you the same thing? Not sure if snowy owls are out in the daylight for other reasons.

  25. Patty says

    February 4, 2014 at 10:17 am

    Wow! Wow! Wow! The adventure, the shots, the OWL! What a day.

  26. Catie says

    February 5, 2014 at 2:27 pm

    Gorgeous. I love watching the birds, but rarely have my camera ready in time. I live on a creek, so I get some of the most amazing birds..kestrels, blue heron & egrets. Maybe if I took the time to sit on my deck for a week and not move….

Archives

carole AT caroleknits DOT net
my read shelf:
Carole's book recommendations, liked quotes, book clubs, book trivia, book lists (read shelf)

2021 Reading Challenge

2021 Reading Challenge
Carole has read 15 books toward her goal of 75 books.
hide
15 of 75 (20%)
view books

carolejuliusphoto

Friday Night Snacks while camping. This is shaping Friday Night Snacks while camping. This is shaping up to be a really (really) great decision. #fridaynightsnacks #itsaboutdamntime #cheeseandcrackers #martinitime #huckthecamper #adventuresofdaleandcarole #campinglife #sandypondcampground #thosenapkinsthough
Now blooming in the dahlia patch, Hamilton Lillian Now blooming in the dahlia patch, Hamilton Lillian! #dahliaseason #dahlialove #hamiltonlilliandahlia #igrewitmyself #flowerfarmer #crookedbarnflowerfarm #flowersaremagical
So. We did a thing. After two years of hemming and So. We did a thing. After two years of hemming and hawing, looking at new and used campers and being very intentional with what we knew wanted, we bought ourselves a brand new 25’ camper. Let the camping adventures begin again! #campinglife #weboughtacamper #adventuresofdaleandcarole #newadventures #camperlife
Now blooming in my garden, dahlia variety number t Now blooming in my garden, dahlia variety number two, Hamilton Lillian. I’m equally obsessed! #dahliaseason #dahliaobsession #igrewitmyself #flowersaremagical #hamiltonlilliandahlia
Officially obsessed with my first dahlia! #dahlias Officially obsessed with my first dahlia! #dahlias #dahliaseason #igrewitmyself #flowerfarmer #flowersaremagical
My first ever dahlia grown from a tuber is almost My first ever dahlia grown from a tuber is almost in bloom! #dahlias #dahliabud #dahliaseason #growingdahlias #flowerfarmer #igrewitmyself #flowersaremagical
It’s the last night of vacation, I go back to wo It’s the last night of vacation, I go back to work tomorrow. It’s been fab, I must say. One week in Maine and one week at home is perfect. I read 7 books and had, well, more cocktails than that. 🤣 We’re having our usual snacks on the deck, that sterling silver canoe that I bought in Camden, ME is the star of the tray. Okay, maybe the cheese from @thelostkitchen, too, because it’s perfectly stinky and utterly delicious. Cheers to a vacation well spent! #vacationisover #cocktailhourathome #martinitime #cheeseandcrackers #silvercanoe #cheesetray
Pizza Fridays have returned now that we’re home. Pizza Fridays have returned now that we’re home. My fav is margherita. I make the sauce and dough myself, the mozzarella is local and I grew the basil.  @ooni.it #margheritapizza #homemadepizza #pizzafriday #happyfriyay #imadeitmyself #localfood
It’s wonderful to be home, reunited with the cat It’s wonderful to be home, reunited with the cats and all of our own stuff, but I miss this morning wake up call from the sun. #baysidemaine #sunrise #coastofmaine #mainesunrise #sunriseovertheocean #thewaylifeshouldbe #morningview
It’s been another exceptional week on the coast It’s been another exceptional week on the coast of Maine. I feel more myself here than anywhere, listening to the sound of the ocean, inhaling the salt air, and feeling the gentle sea breezes. This week means everything to me and I’m so grateful for the privilege of spending time here. #baysidemaine #fridaynightsnacks #cheeseandcrackers #rechargebytheocean #coastofmaine #thewaylifeshouldbe
Watching Gaslit with a view. It’s another beauti Watching Gaslit with a view. It’s another beautiful night in Bayside. #baysidemaine #gaslitstarz #alaptopwithaview #porchsitting #coastofmaine
A donut the size of my hand! This one is called Th A donut the size of my hand! This one is called The Homer 🤣 @theonlydoughnut.belfast #theonlydoughnut #belfastmaine #thewaylifeshouldbe #donutsforbreakfast
I can’t get enough of this view. #baysidemaine # I can’t get enough of this view. #baysidemaine #thewaylifeshouldbe #maine #theviewfromhere
Friday night snacks look better from here. And als Friday night snacks look better from here. And also, I’m not oblivious to today’s news, I’m devastated. I’m also extra grateful to (a) live in Massachusetts and (b) be privileged enough to ignore it for right now while on vacation. #fridaynightsnacks #martinitime #baysidemaine #cheeseandcrackers #myhappyplace
Pizza night. What can I say? Wednesday is the new Pizza night. What can I say? Wednesday is the new Friday. #oonipizzaoven @ooni.it #pizzanight #outdoorliving #margaritapizza #imadeitmyself #homemadeisbest
Happy FriYay, friends! #fridaynightsnacks #friyayn Happy FriYay, friends! #fridaynightsnacks #friyaynight #helloweekend #martinitime #cheeseandcrackers #charcuterie #outdoorliving
Happy Sunday from Fred and George! #sundaymorningv Happy Sunday from Fred and George! #sundaymorningvibes #siamesecatsofinstagram #siamesecats #fredandgeorge
Friday night is pizza night these days. And those Friday night is pizza night these days. And those napkins? They sum up the secret to our 25 (next Tuesday!) year marriage! #oonipizzaoven #fridaynightsnacks #peaceloveandcocktails
It’s a perfect June morning for Sunday brunch un It’s a perfect June morning for Sunday brunch under the pergola. #sundaybrunch #brunchalfresco #pergolaliving #outdoorliving #inmybackyard #juneismyfavoritemonth
My patriotism is sorely lacking at the moment. Sti My patriotism is sorely lacking at the moment. Still, I’m grateful to head into Memorial Day weekend focusing on the good, remembering those who gave the ultimate sacrifice while serving our country, seeking common ground and (always) looking for hope. If all that fails, at least I’ve got a martini. And snacks. #fridaynightsnacks #memorialdayweekend2022 #cheeseandcrackers #martinitime
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Categories

ABC Along Adventures of Dale and Carole Birthdays Bloggers Books Charity Knitting Contests Eye Candy Friday Feeling Crafty Fiber Festivals Food Good, Bad, Ugly Hmmm Knitting Knitting Olympics Macro Monday Memes Monday On My Mind Movies One Little Word Photography Project Spectrum Quilting Random Read With Us Reenacting Run For Your Life Saturday Posts Selfies Show & Tell Sock Knitting Spinning Sunday Funnies Swaps Ten on Tuesday Thankfulness That's Life Think Write Thursday Three Things Throwback Thursday Thursday Things Uncategorized Vacations Wordless Words in the Wild

Copyright 2014 Carole Knits · Log in